Regardless of how much or how little adults drink, it is not safe for individuals under 21. Binge drinking and regular consumption of alcohol damages brain tissue and vital organs in children and teens. In addition to physical effects, it can become chemically and emotionally addicting.
Known commonly as booze, hard stuff, a cold one (beer) and other nicknames, alcohol can be easy to come by and easy to binge.
Each year, roughly 5,000 people under 21 die as a result of underage drinking (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism).
Binge drinking is the most common and deadly pattern of excessive alcohol use in the United States.1,2,3 Binge drinking is defined as a pattern of drinking that brings a person’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC) to 0.08 g/dl or above.
The 2017 Youth Risk Behavior Survey7 found that among high school students, during the past 30 days:
Unlike adults, some teens do not develop obvious hangovers after drinking. Still, watch out for these signs of drinking:
Have a conversation with your teens about alcohol. When talking, remain calm and keep an open mind to create an honest dialogue. Refrain from harsh judgment, but aim to promote awareness of the following:
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Data and statistics for this website are obtained from trusted sources like the CDC and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. For more information, please contact us.